This invention is based on metallic compositions and metallic coating and molding processes disclosed in the grand-parent application Ser. No. 08/160,428 filed on Nov. 30, 1993, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,393,568 issued on Feb. 28, 1995 which application and patent are incorporated in this application by this reference.
This invention results from experimentations with metal/resin composites originally developed for the protective coating of underwater structures against chemical and biological fouling and heat-dissipating electrical insulators. It was found that through selective apportioning and dispersion of metal powders into resin-based materials, composites could be created that exhibit certain specific characteristics of one of the components while excluding some other common characteristics of those components. For instance, the grand-parent application teaches how to form a composite that exhibits many of the mechanical characteristics of a particular metal while remaining electrically non-conductive.
It was thought that by extending the range and type of components, metal composites having broader applications in many fields of human endeavor could be developed.